The invention relates to a domestic appliance with at least one manually operable longitudinally or rotationally movable control device, which control device can adopt several latching positions. The domestic appliance may be a cooking appliance or a laundry care appliance in particular.
In the field of automotive technology, control knobs arranged, for example, on a central console are known (e.g. the so-called iDrive Controller by BMW), which are able to change their number of latching positions according to the operating mode.
DE 197 12 049 A1 discloses, in the field of automotive technology, an operating apparatus for manually inputting information into a device, having a final control element whose position can be changed under the effect of an activation force and which is connected to a converter for generating electrical signals which characterize the position of the final control element, and having a motor element which is connected to the final control element and which, under the control of the electrical signals, exerts a force on the final control element, the size and direction of which force is dependent on the position of the final control element and/or on the information which is to be input, wherein there is provision for the converter to be composed of the rotor of the motor element and sensors which respectively emit an electrical signal as a function of the position of the rotor.
DE 100 29 191 A1 discloses, in the field of automotive technology, an operating element with a rotary knob, a magnetic circuit and at least one coil. It is provided that the rotary knob is rotatably mounted with respect to at least one part of the magnetic circuit, that the gap located between the rotary knob and magnetic circuit is filled with a magnetorheological liquid and that the coil is provided to produce a variable braking effect on the rotary knob.
For domestic appliances, rotary knobs with fixed, mechanically predefined latching positions are currently known, the rotational position of which can be detected electromechanically, visually or magnetically for instance. Furthermore, for domestic appliances there are knobs without latching positions, which can rotate freely, e.g. so-called “bit generators”. Magnetically fastened, removable knobs without latching positions are also known, which can likewise rotate freely, e.g. a so-called “twist pad”.
The object of the present invention is to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art for domestic appliances at least in part and in particular to enable an operation for electrically operable domestic appliances with diverse applications and which is particularly user-friendly.
This object is achieved according to the features of the independent claims. Preferred embodiments may be derived in particular from the dependent claims.
The object is achieved by a domestic appliance with at least one manually operable longitudinally or rotationally movable control device, which control device can adopt several latching positions, wherein the latching positions can be variably adjusted.
The advantage of this is that a control device can be installed in many different domestic appliances, which enables a cost-effective manufacture and lower storage expenses. In addition, a haptic sensation (e.g. a latching sensation) can be adjusted more accurately, which improves ease of use. Moreover, the haptic sensation can also be changed subsequent to the installation into a domestic appliance, which improves ease of use even further.
The control device may have in particular a handle element for its manual operation by a user or operator of the domestic appliance. The control device may also be referred to as an operating device or operating element.